FAMU suspends dance team after hazing reports

A horse drawn carriage carrying the casket of Florida A&M University band member Robert Champion is …

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida A&M University, still reeling from the hazing-related death of a marching band drum major 10 months ago, on Tuesday suspended its Torque Dance Team following allegations of an off-campus hazing incident.

Interim President Larry Robinson said the university received an anonymous report from a parent Tuesday afternoon about an alleged incident that occurred over the Labor Day weekend.

"The University takes very seriously any allegation of hazing and has moved quickly to shut the organization down pending the outcome of an investigation," Robinson said in a news release. "We have zero tolerance for hazing. It's deplorable and will not be tolerated. It is unconscionable that a student organization would participate in any hazing activity considering what has transpired in the past year."

The campus police chief, dean of students and director of student activities were all notified of the allegations. Robinson said they've launched an investigation, but details about what may have happened weren't released.

According to university records, the dance team had already been inactive since December 2011 because it didn't have an adviser.

FAMU has cracked down on hazing since the death last November of drum major Robert Champion, who died after being beaten by fellow band members during a hazing ritual aboard a bus parked outside an Orlando hotel following a football game. The Marching 100 was later suspended, meaning the band won't be playing at this season's football games.

Twelve people face felony hazing charges, while two others face misdemeanor counts. They have pleaded not guilty.

Also following Champion's death, FAMU suspended new membership intake for all clubs and organizations and implemented more strict procedures. That recruitment ban is set to be lifted this month.

ATMORE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama inmate coughed repeatedly and his upper body heaved for at least 13 minutes during an execution using a drug that has previously been used in problematic lethal injections in at least three other states.

Paula Broadwell is finally breaking her silence over her affair with former CIA director and retired Gen. David Petraeus because she says she wants to reclaim her “own narrative” and career. Broadwell, a former military intelligence officer and biographer, admitted to having an extramarital affair with Petraeus, whom she met while researching a book on his life. Petraeus, who is reportedly being considered by President-elect Donald Trump for secretary of state, later admitted he shared classified information with Broadwell.

Pakistani military helicopters on Thursday, Dec., 8, ferried remains of plane crash victims to the capital, Islamabad, as aviation authorities said they opened a probe into the crash that killed 47 passengers and crew the day before in the country’s northwest. The small twin-propeller aircraft was traveling from the scenic mountain resort city of Chitral to Islamabad on Wednesday when one of its engines failed shortly after takeoff and crashed in the hillside village of Gug in the district of, according to Pervez George of the Civil Aviation Authority. The plane belonged to the Pakistani national carrier, the Pakistan International Airlines, and had 42 passengers and five crew members on board, PIA spokesman Daniyal Gilani said. (AP) See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Tumblr .

Christmas decoration is displayed at the Christmas market near the ‘Marienplatz’ square in Munich, Germany; a fan dressed as a stormtrooper waves a mini light saber during the Japan premiere of ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ in Tokyo, Japan; and a view of light shining through a gate during a media preview event for the new summer exhibition ‘Versailles: Treasures from the Palace’ at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia are some of the photos of the day. (AP/EPA/Getty/Reuters) See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Tumblr.

After inadvertently sending out a promotional email on Wednesday regarding the NES Classic Edition, Best Buy sent out a clarification email later in the day to confirm that it would in fact have the hard-to-find console in stock at retail stores beginning on December 20th.
Last night, Oscar Muñoz ( @oscarinmv on Twitter ) received an email from Best Buy informing him that the NES Classic Edition would be "available in all Best Buy stores tomorrow, December 20." At the time, "tomorrow" was actually December 8th, which explains why Best Buy had to send another email minutes later explaining that NES Classic Edition consoles would actually be in stores on the 20th (via: @matthewrex ).
https://twitter.com/matthewrex/status/806661882941583360
Unsurprisingly, there will be limited quantities available, so if you want to grab an NES Classic Edition from Best Buy later this month, you'll probably need to be at your local store the minute it opens.
Nothing in the email suggests that any stock will be available on BestBuy.com , but it still might be worth keeping an eye out on the website come December 20th. We'll be sure to update this post if we hear anything definitive about the NES Classic Edition coming to Best Buy's website.
If you don't want to wait that long, Amazon said on Twitter earlier this week that it would have "exciting announcements to make in the coming week" for NES Classic Edition fans. We won't know for sure until the retailer shares more details, but we have to assume that means Amazon will have more units soon as well.

By Lincoln Feast and Greg Torode SYDNEY/HONG KONG (Reuters) - Vietnam has begun dredging work on a disputed reef in the South China Sea, satellite imagery shows, the latest move by the Communist state to bolster its claims in the strategic waterway. Activity visible on Ladd Reef in the Spratly Islands could anger Hanoi's main South China Sea rival, Beijing, which claims sovereignty over the group and most of the resource-rich sea. Ladd Reef, on the southwestern fringe of the Spratlys, is completely submerged at high tide but has a lighthouse and an outpost housing a small contingent of Vietnamese soldiers.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man convicted of killing a store clerk is scheduled to be executed Thursday, but lawyers for the former Eagle Scout are urging it be blocked because a judge overrode a jury recommendation in imposing the death sentence.

A federal judge who ordered Michigan to begin its recount has now effectively ended it, tying his decision to a state court ruling that found Green Party candidate Jill Stein had no legal standing to request another look at ballots